Reds lean toward pitching on Day 2 of Draft

CINCINNATI -- Pitching is often the staple demand of most First-Year Player Drafts and the Reds certainly haven't deviated from stockpiling more arms through the first two days.

With 15 rounds completed by Tuesday night, the Reds have already taken nine pitchers. Following first-rounder Nick Travieso's selection on Monday with the 14th overall pick, eight more pitchers were taken by Cincinnati on Tuesday.

"The highest rate of attrition is with the pitchers," said Reds senior director of amateur scouting Chris Buckley. "You definitely have to take more pitchers. Some, unfortunately, will get hurt and some won't be quite as good as we think."

The Reds' first pick of the afternoon was shortstop Tanner Rahier, taken in the second round out of Palm Desert (Calif.) High School. Rahier was projected by many publications to be either a first-round or compensation-round pick.

"We were a little surprised," Buckley said.

Among the pitchers taken were three left-handers -- Yale University's Nolan Becker, Mason Felt of Hebron Christian Academy (Ga.) and Oregon State reliever Matt Boyd.

Becker stands out for his size at 6-foot-6, and the organization liked his intangibles.

"We're hoping he can start," Buckley said. "If not, he's definitely a bullpen guy. He had a good year and a bunch of scouts saw him and liked him. When you get an Ivy League kid, you're getting a first class guy. Makeup is a big separator."

The lone catcher taken by Cincinnati on Tuesday was Notre Dame's Joe Hudson, who went in the sixth round. His reports show a strong throwing arm that can prevent stealing.

"We're going to have to see how the bat goes, but he can really catch and throw," Buckley said. "He has some power."

In the seventh round, the Reds took the son of a former Major Leaguer when selecting center fielder Beau Amaral out of UCLA. Amaral is the son of Rich Amaral, who played parts of 10 seasons from 1991-2000 with the Mariners and Orioles.

"We were really happy to get Beau Amaral where we got him," Buckley said.

Sticking to an organizational Draft trend over the past few years, the Reds went heavy on the college players. Through Day 2, 12 of Cincinnati's 17 picks were selected out of colleges.

Don't expect that to change on Wednesday for Day 3. New compensation rules limit how much money can be given to Draft picks. Many high school kids can become a signability issue because they can elect to head to college instead.

"The rules have been changed with the new CBA," Buckley said. "It's a little harder to attract the high school kids at certain points of the Draft.

"After we start rolling a little bit, I think you'll see all teams take more college kids."

Here is the recap of the Reds' picks on Day 2:

Round 2, No. 78 overall: SS Tanner Rahier, Palm Desert HS, Calif.
Rahier actually did not play for his high school the past three years, instead choosing to play for a select club team. That might have cost him a chance to go in the first round, where he was projected in multiple mock drafts. The 18-year-old Rahier has a letter of intent signed with the Univ. of San Diego, but is leaning towards going pro.

Round 3, pick No. 109: RHP Dan Langfield, Univ. of Memphis
The third-highest Draft pick in his school's history, Langfield is 7-6 with a 2.79 ERA in 15 starts. He struck out 111 batters while walking 47 in 93 2/3 innings. He has gone from being undrafted in high school in Massachusetts to ranking third on Memphis' all-time strikeout list with 252.

Round 5, No. 172: LHP Mason Felt, Hebron Christian Academy, Georgia
Felt, who is from Lawrenceville, Ga., has a letter of intent with Oregon State to play college ball. The organization felt he was pretty polished for a high school kid.

Round 6, No. 202: C Joe Hudson, Notre Dame Univ.
A semi-finalist for the Johnny Bench Award, Hudson had a respected arm in college as a junior. He led the Big East conference in throwing out base runners (38 percent) and for fewest opponent steals (32) and attempts (56). His .332 batting average led the Irish.

Round 7, No. 232: OF Beau Amaral, UCLA
The son of former Major League outfielder Rich Amaral, he was the starting center fielder for the Bruins the past three seasons. He is batting .320 with four homers, five triples, nine doubles and a team-leading 61 runs this season. Amaral is the second UCLA player taken in this Draft, behind compensation-round selection (57th overall) outfielder Jeff Gelalich.

Round 8, No. 262, 3B Seth Mejias-Brean, Univ. of Arizona
Mejias-Brean is batting .363 with a .410 on-base percentage in 58 games this season for the Wildcats. According to the Arizona Republic, the 21-year-old can throw a football up to 60-70 yards and make 360-degree dunks in basketball.

Round 9, No. 292, OF Daniel Pigott, Univ. of Florida
The starting center fielder for the Gators, Pigott leads the club with a .321 batting average, 38 RBIs and is 11-for-16 stealing bases. He has 46 runs, 13 doubles, 22 walks and seven home runs.

Round 10, No. 322, RHP Jeremy Kivel, Spring H.S., Texas
Kivel attends the same high school that boasts pitcher Josh Beckett as an alumnus. He is currently slated to attend the Univ. of Houston.

Round 11, No. 352, LHP Nolan Becker, Yale University
Turning 21 next week, Becker is a big fellow and listed at 6-foot-6, 225 pounds. In the senior's final game for the Bulldogs, against Brown, he struck out 16 batters. He finished 2012 with a 2-4 record, a 4.09 ERA and had 25 walks with 56 strikeouts over 50 2/3 innings.